Canadian Hazard Information Service, Canadian Hazard Information Service

Released

2013 09 05

Abstract

(Summary)Space weather refers to the conditions and processes occurring in space which have the potential to affect the near Earth environment. Space weather processes can include changes in
the interplanetary magnetic field, coronal mass ejections from the Sun, and disturbances in Earth's magnetic field. The effects of space weather include (but are not limited to) geomagnetically induced currents in power systems and pipelines,
azimuthal errors in directional drilling, disruptions to high frequency radio communication and GPS navigation, and failure or misoperation of satellites.The Canadian Space Weather Forecast Centre monitors, analyzes, and forecasts space weather
and dispatches warnings and alerts across Canada. This includes tracking solar disturbances from the Sun to the Earth and monitoring the Earth’s magnetic field on the ground using a network of magnetic observatories distributed throughout
Canada.The Space Weather Bulletin is generated by the Canadian Space Weather Forecast Centre and provides recipients with a daily description of current space weather conditions. The bulletin begins with a summary of the most important
observations followed by a description of the current geomagnetic activity levels and a 24 hour forecast of the future geomagnetic activity levels. Current conditions and forecasted conditions are provided individually for the polar cap, auroral, and
sub-auroral zones in Canada. Potential impacts to power systems, HF radio, geostationary satellites, aeromagnetic surveys, and directional drilling operations are provided for each zone based on the level of geomagnetic activity. In addition to this
summary, detailed information about solar conditions, interplanetary conditions, and the geostationary satellite environment are provided. Descriptions of solar conditions include the observation of coronal mass ejections, coronal holes, active
regions, and solar flares. Where possible, the time at which effects are expected to be observed at the Earth are provided. Interplanetary conditions refer to the solar wind speed, and the magnitude and polarity of the north / south (perpendicular to
the ecliptic plane) component of the interplanetary magnetic field. In the geostationary satellite environment, the observed and predicted values of the electron fluence at geostationary orbit with respect to threshold levels are provided for the
previous and following day. Geomagnetic activity levels for the past and future 24 hours in the polar cap, auroral, and sub-auroral zones are also provided. All descriptions are based on data products and links available at
www.spaceweather.gc.ca.This report provides a description of the Space Weather Bulletin and documents the bulletin in 2012. Section 2 provides an introduction and description of the bulletin. A listing of typical bulletin statements is provided
in Section 3 for the three versions of the bulletin issued in 2012. Section 4 lists possible impacts associated with varying levels of space weather activity, and Section 5 contains tables of values used to select descriptive statements (very low /
low /moderate / high / very high) used in the bulletin. A glossary of terms is included in Section 6. Section 7 provides a summary of space weather activity for 2012 that will be useful for examining bulletins provided in Section 8.

Summary

(Plain Language Summary, not published)Space weather refers to the dynamic conditions on the Sun and in the space environment, in particular, in the near-Earth environment, that can affect
critical infrastructure. NRCan operates the Canadian Space Weather Forecast Centre and conducts research into space weather effects on power systems, pipelines, radio communications and GNSS positioning to help Canadian industry understand and
mitigate the effects of space weather. The Geomagnetic Laboratory of Canada prepares a daily space weather bulletin summarizing recent, current, and forecasted space weather conditions, and possible impacts on technology. This document describes
the bulletin, provides a list of typical statements used in 2012, includes a glossary of terms, summarizes geomagnetic activity in 2012, and provides all bulletins issued in 2012.